The Art of Fundraising Copywriting: Maddie Nance’s Global Perspective

Tasha: Can you please introduce yourself and tell us a little bit about your nonprofit origin story?

Madeleine: So I’m Madeline Nance, but a lot of people call me Maddie. I do. I’ve been in the nonprofit industry. I thought about this just now. It’s been 15 years. Since I had my first fundraising job, and it was, this was in Australia, it was for a small animal welfare non profit.

Madeleine: And it was as a fundraising coordinator. So, you know how it is with, with the small nonprofits, it’s, everyone’s doing everything. So I learned a lot in that role. Um, and then I moved on to some larger charities. I worked for two more after that, um, one in children for children and one for youth, and I got some larger.

Madeleine: Organization experience. And then it was when I had my first baby seven years ago that I went freelance started my own business as a writer, because I love the writing side of fundraising and I started that, I made that my niche. So I am a fundraising copywriter and I’ve been doing that for seven years now.

Madeleine: From America and now live in America. I

Tasha: was going to say you’re all over the place over the world, which is very exciting

Madeleine: That’s the upside of writing. You can do that for anyone anywhere

Tasha: Yeah, and and so you still have clients in Australia and in the US now. Yes.

Madeleine: Yep So I’m working I am writing for organizations in Australia, New Zealand Singapore, the U.

Madeleine: S. Possibly. Oh, and Canada.

Tasha: Yep. Nice. That’s amazing. That’s amazing. And so, I mean, uh, this wasn’t part of the questions, but I’m gonna ask anyway. So what, what do you see as commonalities between the countries and any like quirky differences that you see in fundraising coffee? Like How do you straddle all of those different worlds?

Tasha: Yes,

Madeleine: I think about this stuff a lot. So I think overall fundraising and non profits, there’s definitely a consistent trend across countries. There’s, you know, we’re facing similar challenges with the way we do things as an industry and dealing with donors and all that sort of thing. So there’s definitely similarities.

Madeleine: The differences as a writer that I’m finding is it’s the way different cultures communicate. So for example, in Australia, there is, I think Australians are more laid back, more conversational, um, and I, I am finding in the U S it’s a little more direct. Which can actually be great for fundraising because you can go in with a stronger ask.

Madeleine: Um, and I would say Canadians have a similar way of communicating to Australians and New Zealanders. So I’m seeing that as well. Yeah. It’s been a cool thing to learn.

Tasha: Yeah,

Madeleine: it

Tasha: is. And you can, there is both a writing and a communication style. And for sure, as a Canadian, Who has many American, uh, friends and has worked with Americans.

Tasha: Like it is much more direct in the U S usually in a, in a positive, like you’re noting in a positive way. Um, but I mean, Canadians are just a little, a little, a little more subtle. Right. And, um, not as quick to like jump in to like the ask as quickly, um, with benefits in some ways, but also is not as great sometimes for a fundraising, um, a fundraising ask for.

Tasha: You’re trying to do too many things in one email because you’re like, Oh, well, is this a newsletter update or is it fundraising ask for like, you know, where is it? Right. So

Madeleine: exactly. Yeah, I totally see that. So I’m glad you agree with me. That’s, and I definitely, when I, when I say Americans are more direct, I do mean it in a positive way.

Madeleine: And my husband’s American and obviously I live in America and I love everyone here. And it’s been, it’s even in my personal life, I’ve been learning the different ways to communicate. And I mean, this is going down a whole not whole other tangent, but even in America, the differences I’ve lived in New York before, and now I live in the South, North Carolina.

Madeleine: People communicate differently.

Tasha: Yeah, absolutely. Absolutely. I love that you’ve got like this global view on fundraising.

Madeleine: Makes me hyper aware of people.

Tasha: Yeah. Yeah, no. And I think, you know, you bring that into your writing, like for sure. Like it’s the influences and the stories and the people that really kind of bring, yeah, bring it, are writing.

Tasha: So favorite piece. of working in the non profit space? Like what just like absolutely gets you jazzed about non profit work?

Madeleine: Okay, so my favorite piece that I’ve, that I write, I would say, so I love writing for the non profit sector. I love it because of the emotion. I, I cry so much when I’m writing.

Madeleine: Because I, I feel what I feel the story that I’m writing about. And the amount of times my husband walks into my office and he’s like, what’s wrong because I’m just streaming with tears. And that, but, but I love that about my writing is being able to just really experience something that I don’t know. I don’t know anything close to that in my real life.

Madeleine: I, in my life, I don’t know challenges like that. So I love the emotion of it, but what I was going to say is I, my favorite piece I’m going to choose is actually one of my more uplifting things that I do is for a nice change of pace and it’s writing newsletter stories. So the one, one in particular, I write for an organization in Australia who work with aboriginal communities.

Madeleine: And so these aboriginal owned businesses, they write and they give updates on the businesses they’re running in their communities and all the success they’re having. And it’s just so cool to write about. I just feel like I’m there and I’m excited with them. So I love, I love those really happy, upbeat stories as well.

Madeleine: So it is a nice change of. to crying my eyes off.

Tasha: Well, and I think like you noted for, you know, non profit work, social impact work can really give those who are outside of the work an opportunity to connect with other things that are going on in the world that matter, right? And you can have. You know, it’s okay to have a job that’s, you know, the way we all need to make money and all those things.

Tasha: But I think there’s a deep desire in people to feel connected to the world at large. And if you aren’t working in social impact, you still want that, those feelings, right? You still want that like goodwill of going, Holy crap, I’m like changing lives today. And that is a, that is a really cool way. And writing, uh, you know, video, all of those different things kind of come together to create those emotions.

Madeleine: I think people, people love storytelling. People love stories. They want to hear them. And I do think people seek that emotional connection. So being able to create that for someone is, you know, if I’m feeling it while I’m writing it, I’d hope that translates to them reading it.

Tasha: I’m sure it does. Okay. So, you know, you’re experienced in nonprofit industry and now as a consultant, what are you seeing as currently one of the biggest challenges for nonprofit?

Madeleine: So sometimes I think about this because we, you know, there’s, there’s always this, this People saying, Oh, charities, nonprofits, they should act more like businesses.

Madeleine: They should really look to the corporate sector to learn how to operate. And I’ve been thinking about, well, I write mostly for nonprofits and what makes that different? What is my challenge? And a big thing is. not having a tangible product that you’re selling. So it’s not like, it’s not like a mobile phone company or, you know, a moisturizer.

Madeleine: You don’t, you’re not, it’s not a transactional thing of you give me your money as the customer. And I give you this product that you can physically hold in your hand. So working in the nonprofit sector, As fundraisers, we, we have to sell something that is, it’s an idea, really. It’s an idea that you are helping someone who you can’t have right in front of you.

Madeleine: You might never meet them, but you have to convince or move someone’s heart to want to be part of something that they can’t physically be part of. And so that’s a huge challenge for our sectors. How do you do that? And that’s a big part of my fundraising writing is finding the right words to say to show people why they’re needed and what their donations mean when they can’t physically be there and see it.

Tasha: Yeah, because I mean, you know, so many organizations You know, look at like so many cool organizations that offer child sponsorship. The chances you’re going to connect or ever meet that child that you’ve sponsored are probably pretty low. Although I guess with today’s technology, you may actually have an opportunity to talk to them one day.

Tasha: Right. Something that, you know, world vision 30 years ago would have never been able to do something like that. So that’s, that would be pretty incredible. But I think. You know, we all like to like hold something on our hands a little bit and go, this is what, this is what I got out of this. And that’s, that’s, that’s a lot harder.

Tasha: Um,

Madeleine: you just made me think of this as well. It’s when, when you can hold something in your hands and it’s something you’ve bought, there’s a direct benefit to you. Like this is the product I bought and I’m going to use it and get these benefits. Whereas again, when we as charities, when we, when somebody donates to our cause.

Madeleine: They’re not necessarily directly benefiting from it. They’re doing it to benefit somebody else. Yeah. And that in itself is a huge challenge to get somebody’s, but basically get someone to put their heart in, into a cause.

Tasha: Yeah, absolutely. Yeah. And it, and it requires a, um, different continuous input than a transactional item, right?

Tasha: I put this in like finances or whatever, and now I have, whereas I think, you know, donating to a charity or. You know, it’s a constant input on both ends, right? Like, you know, and I think nonprofits often, it can get easy to forget that. And like that set it and forget it mentality of,

Madeleine: you know, even something you said a bit earlier, even though I just, I said that it’s not necessarily that the donor is getting a direct benefit.

Madeleine: In a way they do. I think about when I donate to a cause, how good I feel. And I know you mentioned that early earlier that you feel so good when you support something. So you are actually giving someone a benefit directly to them and that’s to feel good.

Tasha: Yeah. Yeah. It is a feel good feeling. Right. And, and.

Tasha: It’s that constant, like, nudge, little poke, and I was gonna say, like, I know so many nonprofits that are terrified to check in with their monthly donors, right? Yes. I’ll email them again, what if they cancel, because now they, they’re been reminded that they have this 25 donation coming out each month. Yes.

Tasha: They’re like, I actually think you’re missing out on an enormous opportunity. Definitely. Those people might be more interested in, in donating more, require care and then further input. Right. And yes. Um, but that’s an opportunity, not, not something to be scared of, I

Madeleine: guess. And an example I’ve experienced exactly what you’re saying.

Madeleine: So for one of the large nonprofits I work to for in Australia, we were building up our investing a lot of money into our regular giving program. And so we had a lot of donors. And one of my jobs was to put together a donor journey. So have regular communications, checking in with them and showing donors what they were doing and telling this one story and unfolding it with each communication.

Madeleine: And I got the most beautiful responses. Like people, people were playing being like, Oh, that’s so sweet. Oh, how nice. Thank you so much for the email. And it was like, almost like I was becoming friends with the donors. It was like a personal connection thing. And so it’s quite the opposite. I mean, yes. you, some people will can of a donation, but it’s s the people who actually feel good about their sup connected to the cause.

Madeleine: W people are probably going than they would have if y regular updates.

Tasha: Absolute I love this so much. Um, You know, connection and peer support has had a positive impact on your work in this sector.

Madeleine: Okay. So thinking about the, the things that, you know, sometimes you have those moments in the nonprofit sector where you’re like, this only happens in this industry, this, you know, I think of an example of my first fundraising job for a small animal welfare charity.

Madeleine: And my, I was the one opening all the envelopes. With the donation forms and the checks from all the donors. And I remember one of them I opened up and it just had this big writing over it. Do not spend this on cats. And it was just like one of those things where it was, I don’t know, it was just hilarious.

Madeleine: And, but what helped was having people next to me in the boat, same boat to be like, what do I do with this? And to be able to, Have a laugh about something strange happening that only happens in the fundraising world and then figure it out together. Like, okay, what are we going to do about this? How do we not spend this on cats?

Tasha: How do we not spend this on cats? How do we potentially reassure this person? We won’t spend it on cats. Yes. And I think that is, that is very true. And there’s, you know, in nonprofits, there’s so many angles. Like if you are a one person shop, You have a very different, uh, set of stories probably than a larger, you know, than a Red Cross is going to have, but there are some similarities across the sector regardless of your position that, you know, I think it’s almost like a trial by fire.

Tasha: If you’re in this industry for any length of time, you are going to have had some, some quirky, some quirky stories or, um, Even just gotten an intense conversation over the weekend with another friend who’s a non profit and another friend who is not, and we were talking about trust and, you know, Bad player, uh, nonprofits that have ruined reputations for other nonprofits.

Tasha: And as, as my friend and I are trying to stay calm and not like lose our minds about, uh, overhead conversations with this other person, right. We’re both just like, but her and I, it was like, we were one brain about the topic, right? Because we both just know exactly what the story is. Whereas here’s this other person who has, doesn’t have exposure to it.

Tasha: And so as. It’s like having a, they’re having a whole new world open to them because they just don’t have the exposure. And in the same way, you know, my friend works at an airline and I have no idea about airline stories. I’m positive if you work in airlines, you’ve got your own stories. But I think that peer conversation and nonprofit, it’s really critical.

Tasha: Um,

Madeleine: and even, you know, coming back to across different countries, like, uh, working with nonprofits and. You know, New Zealand, Australia, the U. S. Canada, Asia there. They have their differences, but there we all experience. A similar something, the uniqueness of the nonprofit sector, it happens, you know, the, the, the demanding donors, the people, or, you know, having, like you were saying, I’m trying to convince people outside the sector, why we need to spend money to make money, those sorts of things that we’re all dealing with that across different countries.

Madeleine: But that’s, and that’s the kind of, it’s like a thread connecting us all in the nonprofit sector.

Tasha: Yeah, yeah, there, there is a thread and I think so often because everyone, the majority of nonprofits are small shops that aren’t attending conferences that aren’t getting out there all that much doing networking.

Tasha: It can feel very much like, well, no one gets it, but there’s tons of people who get it. You just have to go and like find your, find your people, right. And conversations.

Madeleine: Yep. Yeah. And it’s so refreshing when you do meet someone else. Who gets it and it doesn’t even have to be the same sort of cause you can have someone from an animal charity Talking to someone from a hospital foundation and you can come up with the same sorts of experiences that you’re dealing with.

Madeleine: And it’s just like, yes, they get it.

Tasha: Yes, they get it. Right. For sure. And so you’ve been a Hive member for a while now. Um, you’ve written for us, which we talked about earlier and, uh, just absolutely loved your article. What have you gotten out of being a member of the nonprofit Hive so far?

Madeleine: So joining the nonprofit Hive has been.

Madeleine: So it’s been so good for me, especially because I moved from the other side of the world. So back in, back in Australia, I had been in this sector for, you know, about a decade. And so I knew it’s a small world. I knew just about everyone. I know just about everyone. I know the organizations I know into all the conferences.

Madeleine: Then all of a sudden, about a year ago, moving to the U S with my family, I suddenly feel like the new kid on the block all over again. I don’t, you know, I didn’t know anyone in this sector, even I didn’t, I’m getting to know the organizations. And so having, when I joined the nonprofit hive, I felt like it was instant community, like instant friends.

Tasha: And

Madeleine: even, even having the, I love the one on one. I think that’s the best way to get to know someone is to have a one on one chat. So every person I’ve spoken to on a hard chat, I have just connected with instantly and we’ve kept in touch. I just, yeah, I love everyone I’ve met.

Tasha: Well, I’m very, very thankful for you because.

Tasha: Again, one of those easy people to be like, Oh, now he’s signed up. Well, I can put her with anyone’s going to go well. Right. And, and, you know, I think it’s very cool. Your range of experience in house and now in consulting. And I think storytelling is something that a lot of nonprofits really struggle with.

Tasha: So I know what you’re bringing to the conversations. That’s a lot of value to people. This is awesome. Well, so much. How do people. Get in touch with you, learn more about your work. So

Madeleine: I, I run a business called Kind Word and it’s writing and editing. And I also do fundraising copywriting workshops where I’m training non profit teams on how to write better fundraising communications.

Madeleine: So I, my website is kindwordreview. com or you can find me on LinkedIn, Madeline Nance. Yes. I’m very active on LinkedIn.

Tasha: I was going to say, people have to follow you on LinkedIn. It’s fantastic. Your LinkedIn is fantastic with lots of like little tidbits, things to pull out. So I, yeah. Oh, thank you. Highly recommend you follow.

Tasha: Okay. Thank you so much for your time today, Maddie. Really appreciate you. And, uh, this was really fun. Thanks, Tasha.

Madeleine: Okay. Cheers.